Enraged, Lopez anally and vaginally penetrated Nemeth — who was too intoxicated to defend herself — with objects including a beer bottle and a hair straightener, then his fists. Over the course of hours he tore out intestinal matter and caused Nemeth to hemorrhage to death.

Lopez told investigators he stopped to smoke a cigarette and when he returned to the room, Nemeth had stopped breathing.

He called 911 and told officers when they arrived that he and Nemeth had been having “rough sex,” then she went to bathroom and vomited, then died. He later changed his story under questioning.

Through a translator, Lopez told the court on Thursday, “Today, I’m happy to fulfill this conviction … I know what I did has to be paid for and I agree … I pay with my life for the life I took. To Maria’s family I ask forgiveness.”

About the Author

David Ferguson is an editor at Raw Story. He was previously writer and radio producer in Athens, Georgia, hosting two shows for Georgia Public Broadcasting and blogging at Firedoglake.com and elsewhere. He is currently working on a book.